Percy Jackson and the Keys of Olympus
by Child of Hades
Summary: A new demigod is escorted to camp and must take a quest with Percy and his friends. They must succeed or else Olympus will corrupt. Will they succeed? Or will they fail? Takes place after the Titan's Curse but that might change.


**AN: Okay, this is my second fanfic for PJO. Feel free to review and tell me what you think about the story. Constructive Criticism is welcomed and appreciated. Also this takes place after the Titan's Curse but that might change.**

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"Now class," Mr. Barnes said emotionlessly. "Who was the young warrior in Greek Mythology who had a weak heel?"

My hand shot up like a rocket. I looked at everyone in the class. Nobody had their hand up. Some stared off into space while others glared at me and mouthed the words, 'ADHD Freak.' I ignored them and turned back to Mr. Barnes. It wasn't my fault they didn't know the answer. They should have studied. But I don't study. These Greek Myths come to me like that.

Now, you're probably wondering who in the world am I. Well I'm Sam Palmer, you're average 12 year old sixth grader. Well, average isn't exactly the right word. Unlike most kids out there, I had ADHD and dyslexia. ADHD means attention deficit hyperactive disorder. It basically means that I can't sit still for more than a minute. Dyslexia is a disorder when you read words, you get the letters mixed up. I honestly don't let my disorders slow me down though. Even though I have these disorders, I can still play basketball, soccer, and I'm on the track team.

Mr. Barnes sighed boredly. "Yes Miss. Palmer?" He tapped his fingers on his desk impatiently as he waited for me to answer. He glanced at the clock as though he couldn't wait to get out of this place.

_That makes two of us, _I thought to myself. "Um, the answer is Achilles sir. He was the warrior with the bad heel." I looked around the classroom again. Confused expressions crossed the faces of most of my classmates as though this was the first time they had ever heard the name Achilles. We've been learning about him for a week.

"Very good Miss. Palmer," Mr. Barnes said. "Achilles was the son of the sea goddess Thetis. Thetis dipped him in the River Styx to make him invulnerable. Though, she didn't know that she was covering his heel. Because of this, the water did not reach him so it did not make his heel invulnerable." Mr. Barnes was about to explain more but before he could, the bell rang. Almost everyone jumped out of their seats and ran for the door, including Mr. Barnes. Only five of us remained in the classroom after about a few seconds.

I quickly gathered all of my binders and rushed out of the room. I didn't want to be late to my second favorite class. My first favorite period was gym. But the class that I was heading to was one of my other favorites. Lunch. I went to my locker and put in my combination. _12...36...18, _I thought as I twisted the lock. Finally, I pulled my lock off with a loud _pop. _I dropped my binders into my locker and locked it.

"Hey Sam," a voice said behind me. I turned around to come face to face with my friend Jason. Jason was my height which was 5'0. He was tan from his recent vacation to Jamaica. Jason was really funny and always wore a smile on his face.

"So, are we gonna play soccer at lunch today?" Jason asked as we walked to the cafeteria. We entered the cafeteria and the smell of home baked cookies and mash potatoes enter my nostrils.

"Heck yeah we are," I said. I don't know if I mentioned this earlier but I love soccer. It was one of my favorite sports.

"Alright then," Jason said. He flashed me one of his bright smiles. "I'll go borrow the soccer ball later."

I smiled. "Thanks Jason," I said.

Jason shrugged. "No problem. Not really that hard to do." Just then, my other friends, Oscar, Spencer and Brandon came up to us. Now, I know what you're thinking. Are all your friends boy? My answer to that is yes. I'm a tomboy. I hang out with guys. Only 2 of my friends are girls.

"Hey guys," I said to all of them. "Jason's gonna borrow the soccer ball."

"So we're playing soccer then?" Oscar asked. Oscar was Dominican. He was very proud of his country and often bragged about how Dominicans were tough.

"No," Brandon said sarcastically. "We're playing volleyball."

Everyone laughed. I chuckled a little but all happiness was drained out of me when suddenly, the loudspeaker said, "Samantha Palmer, please report to the principal's office. Samantha Palmer report to the principal's office." The laughter died and all eyes were on me. I gulped and slowly rose from the table.

"Good luck," Jason mumbled. "I hope you make it out alive." Oscar nudged him hard in the ribs.

The principal of my school was Principal Stratus. He wasn't particularly what you would call nice. He always had a scowl on his face and was always shouting at students. He had cold, beady, black eyes that were always narrowed and large hands. His whole hand covered half of a student's arm before which was the elbow to the shoulder.

I walked out of the lunch room and slowly made my way to Principal Stratus's office. I began to feel anxious and nervous. The idea of spending some time with the really mean principal of our school wasn't a really thrilling idea. Especially because I didn't know what he was going to do to me. By the time I reached the door to the principal's office, my knees were already trembling. My arm shook as I raised it and knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" a grumpy and deep voice asked irritably. I could tell he was in a bad mood. Of course I was right. He always was in a bad mood.

I cleared my throat. "Um, it's S-Samantha Palmer s-sir." I was thinking of just bolting out of there but I knew I'd be caught anyway.

Principal Stratus's mood seemed to lighten. "Ah Samantha Palmer. I've been expecting you young lady. Why come right in." I winced. He was beginning to act nice and him acting nice was almost as scary as him acting mean. I turned the knob and walked into the principal's office.

To my surprise, it looked like a regular principal office. There was a wooden desk in the middle of the room and two leather chairs seated in front of it. To the right of the desk, there was a bookshelf filled with all kinds of books. On the left hung a map of the world. It was a colored map with a compass rose and everything you would expect on a regular map. I expected his office to have different weapons like chainsaws, axes, spears, and other torturous devices. Don't ask me why.

At the desk, Principal Stratus sat smiling at me. I couldn't tell if it was a happy smile or an evil/menacing one. I was pretty sure that it was an evil smile though. He wore a big black suit with white cuffs and collars. His dark hair was tied back in a ponytail and his black beady eyes seemed to be scanning me. His tan face seemed darker than usual. His monstrous hands were folded on his desk as if he were a kindergarten student.

"Samantha Palmer," Principal Stratus said, smiling sinisterly. "At last." He waved me over and said, "Take a seat." I shuffled forward and cautiously sat down, making sure that there weren't any booby traps or anything.

"Uh, hello Principal Stratus," I said nervously. I was hoping that being polite would make us start off on a brighter note.

Principal Stratus's smile faded and he looked at me with a hard expression. "Hello Samantha," he said with no expression at all. "I would like to ask you a few questions and I want you to answer them truthfully. Do you understand me?" One minute he was smiling and the next, he begins to get all angry. I was a little taken aback by his sudden change of mood.

"Yes sir," I replied meekly. I had a feeling that our little Q&A (Question and Answers) session was about to hit rock bottom.

"Good," Principal Stratus said. "Now, do you have ADHD and Dyslexia?"

I wondered why in the world was he asking me this. Couldn't he just look it up on my record or something?

"Yes sir I do," I answered. Interest began to appear in Principal Stratus's eyes.

"Really?" he asked. "How very interesting." He stared off into space thoughtfully for a moment, then asked, "Who do you live with at home?"

I was beginning to get a little more nervous. Why on earth was he asking me these personal questions? "I live with my mom."

"Hmm," Principal Stratus said. "What about your father?"

I could feel my face become hot. Nobody ever asked me about my dad and strangely I didn't like bringing him up. "I don't know," I answered honestly. "I've never met him."

The sinister smile began to appear on his face again. "Never met your father?" he asked. "Well, then it's obvious that your Olympian parent is a male…"

"Excuse me?" I asked. I was really confused about what he was saying. What Olympian parent was he talking about? "What did you just say?"

"Nothing!" he snapped furiously. "Something you will find out soon." He stood up from his chair. His black beady eyes were now rested on me. "I have everything I need to know." He said, never breaking his gaze from me. "And you seem to fit the criteria. You surely _are _a half-blood."

I was about to ask him what in the world was a half-blood when suddenly, claws started to grow out of his hands. He lunged at me and I shrieked and leapt out of the way just in time. The chair I had been sitting on was ripped to shreds the minute Principal Stratus's massive hands made contact with it. I felt my face become pale as I thought about how I could've been the chair. All ripped to shreds and dead.

Principal Stratus began to grow. Before he was around 6'5 but as each second passed, he seemed to be growing taller and bigger until he was at least ten feet tall. His teeth became pointy like a razor blade. He began to get hairy and his eyes had a hungry look in them. I began to recognize the type of monster he was. It was a monster from Greek Mythology.

"You're a Laistrygonian," I breathed. I was hoping that all this was a dream. Fear rooted me to the spot. The odds weren't really that great. A ten foot tall monster with sharp teeth and claws against a mere five foot tall mortal who was unequipped. Gee, I wonder who would win.

Stratus laughed. "So you know you're Greek Myths eh demigod?" Stratus smiled evilly and said, "Well, I bet you know this then. You're dead meat." Stratus roared and leapt at me. I jumped out of the way but Stratus managed to get part of my arm. Blood ran down my arm from the new wound Stratus had created. I scrambled to the door and tried to open it. To my horror, I realized he had locked it.

"Help!" I shouted desperately. I pounded on the door rapidly. "Help!" Beads of sweat ran down my cheeks. I was going to die.

"Nobody can save you!" Stratus roared triumphantly. He stepped forward and I began to pound on the door as hard as I could. I pounded on it with both hands.

"Help!" I called beseechingly. I turned around and looked at Stratus. He was taking his time to get to me. But, what really caught my attention was what was behind him. Keys. My eyes widened as I realized that I still had a chance. _If I could only get to those keys…_

Without warning, I launched myself towards the keys. Stratus must have not expected that because he was too slow to react. He swung his fist but it landed about 3 feet away from me. I jumped over the shreds of what used to be a chair and grabbed the keys. I landed on the other side of the desk with Stratus on the opposite side of me.

"Why you little," Stratus grumbled and begun to swing both of his fists briskly. I ducked and dodged his attacks. He hit me twice. Once on the stomach and once on the arm. I dodged his last attack and stumbled painfully onto the floor.

"Ow," I moaned. I tried to will myself to get up. _Don't give up, _I thought to myself. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Stratus coming closer. Suddenly, I began to feel myself gain back a little strength as I thought about my mom and my friends. I wasn't going to die. I wasn't going to cause my family and friends grief.

"Puny hero," Stratus mused, strolling forward. "You did your best, but you failed. You might as well give up." Stratus brought his large fist up and swung it with all his might, aiming for my head. In one desperate move, I rolled out of harm's way and got to my feet. I sprinted for the door as Stratus's fist hit the earth. The ground vibrated and I almost tripped as I raced to the door. I slammed into the door but I got right back up. Just because I slammed into it didn't mean I was going to be weak and lay there on the ground. I brought the keys up to the door knob. My hands were trembling as I tried to put the keys into the knob.

Finally, I plunged the keys into the key hole, turned the knob and bursted out into the Middle School hallway.

"Help!" I yelled as I ran down the hall. "Help!" I glanced back behind me and saw that Stratus was hot in pursuit.

"Stop her!" Stratus commanded. "Stop that girl!" Since class was still in session, most of the kids weren't in the hallways. Only a few people who were getting something from their lockers or getting a drink were in the halls. They stopped, stared at us like we were crazy and went on with their business. Outrage and confusion swam in my head. _How could they just stand there and do nothing? Didn't they see that I was getting chased by a monster? _

I slammed the entrance door open with my shoulder and bolted out of the Middle School and into a bright, sunny day. I leapt down the steps and kept running.

"You will _not _get away from me!!" Stratus bellowed tempestuously. I couldn't believe that he was still chasing me. I knew that I couldn't keep running forever. I turned the corner and ran down Culture Avenue.

From the corner of my eye, I saw a boy who looked about fourteen. He had a mop of curly, red hair and bright blue eyes. He had a few freckles and a freaked out expression as we passed him.

"Hey!" he shouted and began to run after us. He staggered a little as he ran like he had some sort of leg disability. A feeling of dread washed over me. If he was going to help me, he would never catch up to us at this rate. Suddenly, the boy kicked off his shoes and began to run a lot faster. Did I say shoes? Well, I was definitely wrong. He kicked off his _feet _and under his feet were a pair of hooves. I suddenly felt like I was going to faint. My principal turning into a monster, a boy who had hooves… this was definitely way more than I could handle in one day.

The boy was very fast and in a few moments, he was running right besides me. I don't know how he had managed to get past the giant monster unharmed. In a few strides, he was ahead of me.

"Follow me!" He ordered and made a turn onto Richardson Street. You probably would have thought I was crazy if I followed him. Well, I did. I didn't have a choice. I could have just kept running and eventually get killed or I could follow him and hope that he would get me to safety. I followed him onto Richardson Street until he led me into an alley.

I slowly came to a halt, panting heavily. When I was okay enough to realize where we were, I turned to him furiously. "Why on earth did you lead me here?!" I asked angrily. "There's nowhere to run! Are you trying to get us killed?!" I have a fiery temper, so excuse me for being so angry. The boy trotted up to me.

He looked me in the eyes and said, "I'm sorry. But we have to fight him." His tone was steady but I could see in his eyes that he had doubt. Before I could react, he tossed a sword at me which I barely caught. I was surprised that I hadn't noticed it before.

It was about three and a half feet long. The hilt was a goldish-silverish color that sparkled in the sun. The blade was regular silver.

I wanted to protest, to ask the kid what I was suppose to do with it but suddenly, an angry, deafening roar echoed throughout the alley. The roar was so intense, it made my skin crawl. The angry principal/monster stepped into the alley. His eyes were filled with pure hatred. He towered over us, covering the sun with his body. I'm not sure if I was seeing correctly, but I could have sworn I saw steam coming out of his nostrils. Stratus looked at me, then he turned his attention to my companion. He examined the boy with his hateful eyes.

Finally he said, "I know you, don't I satyr?" The boy winced as Stratus continued. "You're that satyr called Wendell, aren't you? I remember it now. I was about to exterminate that wretched son of Apollo until you interfered. Well, you are _not _escaping me this time!" The boy named Wendell shifted uncomfortably. Stratus looked at me again and spat with disgust. "And you demigod. You are not getting out of here alive!" Stratus charged at me, bringing his fist out so he could punch me in the gut and pulverize me. I dove to the floor quickly as Stratus's fist sailed over my head and into the brick building that had been behind me. Stratus had put so much strength in his fist that it created a hole in the building and Stratus's fist got stuck in it. I did the only thing that came to me at the moment. I launched my sword upward and it met it's target. I heard something plop down onto the ground next to me. I snuck a glance and saw that it was…Stratus's hand. I let out a yelp and flung the hand away from me with my sword. Blood oozed from the hand and my face got even paler.

Stratus looked at his bloody hand on the ground and let out a furious cry. The look he gave me was an intense look of enragement. "YOU STUPID DEMIGOD!" He stepped closer and I stepped back until he had trapped me into a corner. He started to curse in a language I had never heard before and raised his fist. I knew I was a goner. I screwed my eyes shut, waiting for the final blow. But it never came. Instead, I heard a faint _CLONK_. I opened my eyes a peep to see where the noise had come from.

"Hey you!" Wendell called. Stratus turned to him. I saw a tin can on the floor and soon I understood what happened. Wendell must have thrown a can at the monster to get its attention. "You big, fat monster! I bet you couldn't even hurt a butterfly if you tried!" Wendell stuck his tongue out at Stratus and Stratus turned to him completely which meant that he had his back to me. Wendell gave me a look that seemed to say: _Here's your chance. _I looked at my sword, then at Stratus's back. Stratus had backed up Wendell into a corner. I knew I had to do it. I closed my eyes and lunged my sword forward as hard as I could manage.

There was dead silence. I kept my eyes close, not daring to look up. The silence was soon broken by Stratus's scream. "NO!" he cried. Slowly, he began to turn into dust. Stratus gave me one more horrible glare before disintegrating until there was no sign of him. I slumped to the floor in a crumbled heap. My legs were sore from running, my stomach still hurt from Stratus's punch in the office, my arms had cuts on them and my head pounded viciously. Black dots swam in my vision. I vaguely saw Wendell trot up to me. His face was full of concern.

I only heard Wendell ask, "Are you okay?" before darkness took over.

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**AN: Thanks for reading. I honestly don't think that this was that good. Well, read and review. **


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